Category Archive

Why change? Does your company or organisation employ a person responsible for all aspects of supply chains and who reports to the CEO or a senior executive? Surveys indicate that the majority do not. But with all the media coverage of events that disrupt supply chains, why is this? It could be that the majority of businesses are structured as … Read More

Different requirements In manufacturing businesses, production run lengths have become shorter, due in part to the real or imagined need for product extensions that address narrow customer and consumer needs. There is less of high volume Make to Stock (MTS) and more of High Mix, Low Volume (HMLV) under descriptors of Make to Order (MTO) and Assemble to Order (ATO). … Read More

Planning is a macro view Planning roles have always being analytical, but there is an increasing emphasis on working with system applications and tools and the integration of transaction data with annual budgets or ERP outputs. With the increasing ease of re-running Operational models, the objective of Planning appears to be accurate and fast. However, this is an incorrect view … Read More

The role of each function The previous blogpost identified that the Aim of a Supply Chains group is to provide ‘Competitive Availability’ of products and services. This is achieved through implementing the Objectives of the principal Supply Chains operational functions, consisting of Procurement, Operations Planning and Logistics. The driver for each function is: Objective of Logistics The operational activities for … Read More

Short-term noise Change happens continuously through our lives, but most is not important and we absorb the changes into what we do. Sometimes a change is heralded as a ‘new’ way, but there is insufficient momentum for change, so enthusiasm dies and things return to the old way. For example, during the Covid pandemic, many retailers and manufacturers changed from … Read More